BIO 2026 Conference: Key points on challenges from AI in China

Dr. Brittany Trang covers AI in health and medicine: Does AI actually work? Who benefits, or who could be harmed? She writes the weekly AI Prognosis newsletter. Follow her on Threads, Mastodon, and Bluesky. You can access Brittany on Signal at btrang.01.

Daniel is responsible for the interface between the healthcare industry and the federal government. He reports on corporate influence in government, the health impacts of federal policy, and health care policy. Sensitive information can be sent via Signal (danielp.100).

SAN DIEGO — On the exhibition floor at the annual International BIO Conference in San Diego, executives from biotech companies and startups hummed around pavilions representing member countries and states, pausing to watch World Cup games on a giant screen at the booth of a South Korean contract pharmaceutical manufacturer.

Many participants were also thinking about how to compete off the pitch. China’s growing power in the business of developing new drugs was a central issue for much of the conference, as well as how to promote biotechnology in the United States.

For the U.S.-centered biotech industry, the roadmap continued to be a mix of expectations and trepidation both on and off stage. As well as tightening its grip on Washington and breaking price policy, the company’s efforts in artificial intelligence were also fast-tracked, as early strategies offered hints on how to leverage artificial intelligence to increase competitiveness.